From the Washington Post a few weeks ago:
They call it canned hunting.
South African ranchers breed lions in captivity, from cubs to adults, then release them just after the arrival of a hunter who pays about $15,000 for a kill. Sometimes the animal is drugged to make it easier game. Sometimes it’s lured by fresh meat to a place where the hunter lurks. Sometimes the felines are so accustomed to humans that they amble up to the person waiting to kill it. Not surprisingly, the success of these hunts is 99 percent.
But the Obama administration’s federal protection of lions could end the practice when a new rule goes into effect in about three weeks.
As part of actions listing African and Indian lions as threatened or endangered, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declared that it will make it much harder for American hunters to import the slain animals’ heads — their trophies and bragging rights. In addition, the fees for hunting permits will increase substantially.
A recent analysis by Humane Society International said the harsher U.S. scrutiny of trophy imports, along with the higher fees and the refusal of some carriers such as Federal Express to ship them, could drive the South African ranchers out of business. According to the organization, almost nine of 10 lions shot in canned hunts there are killed by Americans.
Here are some trade law questions that occur to me:
-- What services classification does lion hunting fall under?
-- What commitments, if any, has the U.S. made on these services, under the consumption abroad mode?
-- How would the basic obligations and exceptions in the GATS apply to this measure?
-- Is the commercial impact of the U.S. measures large enough that one or more affected African countries would bring a WTO complaint?
